"jimmy fallon" happening right [ cheers and applause ] this morning on "early today" -- trail of disruption. thousands of passengers remain stranded after this week's massive blizzard in the northeast. playing with fire. peruvian police come under attack during a raid of illegal fireworks. and whole lot of trouble. a curious young german shepherd gets himself into a tight spot. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and a very good morning to you. welcome to our viewers across the nation including the pick time zone. i'm veronica de la cruz.

today we begin with still digging out. after the winter weather has passed, parts of the northeast are struggling to get back to normal. incomes's kurt gregory has more. >> reporter: the big dig continues in new york city after a snowstorm for the ages. frustrations, now building. >> totally disgusted. >> reporter: while residents in the big apple dig out, some travelers stranded at new york's three airports are starting to get out, though progress has been slow. >> they can't get us out until friday. >> reporter: safety officials in maine believe that winds gusting at 40 miles per hour were the primary cause of a ski accident, in which five chairs fell some 25 feet injuring seven people. >> i thought i was going to fall. >> reporter: but in connecticut, the candidate's dark clouds had a silver lining for both skiers and resort operators. >> those conditions are perfect. >> reporter: while residents of philadelphia continue to battle snow, the nfl's eagles battled minnesota in a game that kicked

off 48 hours late, a decision that's been controversial. >> i thought they should have postponed it. i plow snow. so i was out there, and this wasn't the place to be. >> reporter: and mother nature's frigid grip is being felt as far south as florida, where farmers iced over their crops for a third time this month trying to save the citrus. kurt gregory, nbc news. election officials in alaska say they were certify the results of that state's senate race tomorrow. that after a judge cleared the way for incumbent lisa murkowski cleared the way by dismissing a lawsuit. joe miller claimed counting ballots with spelling errors violated state law and the u.s. constitution, but a federal judge disagreed confirming what would be the first official writing campaign for a senate seat since 1954. russia's foreign ministry is lashing out at the u.s. and europe saying criticism of a second conviction of a jailed oil tycoon is, quote, unacceptable. earlier this week, white house

officials raised questions about the verdict since mikhail khodorkovski has been a vocal opponent of vladimir putin. but yesterday the prime minister release add blunt statement saying for earn to mind their own business both at home and in the international arena. in new orleans a tragic fire killed five people. homeless people were trying to keep warm inside the abandoned warehouse in new orleans ninth ward. firefighters have been unable to identify the victims from the smouldering rubble. this is the deadliest fire new orleans has seen in nearly 40 years. >> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america -- in upstate new york, a driver got into a tangled mess. he claims the bed of his dump truck unlocked as he hauled away snow and then became ensnared in utility lines.

the bed hoisted one side of the truck in midair. the driver was treated for minor injuries. officials in pennsylvania say 40 and 50-mile-per-hour winds are to blame for the derailment of ten freight train cars on a bridge, two of which crashed into the river below. a large crane was brought in to remove the cars. no one was injured in the accident. one lucky dog in california was rescued after he got stuck in a wall. the curious canine named rebel slid his head through a small opening and couldn't get out. fortunately his ordeal only lasted 30 minutes and he only sustain add few scrapes. and in florida, nearly 300 manatees huddled in the blue springs park keeping warm, during the record-low temperatures. in a nearby lagoon some questioned whether the artificially warmed water does more harm than good. the manatees are trying to not

die from hypothermia. opponents argue food is scarce there and warm or not, they could actually starve. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, i don't know. every time i see that video. poor dogs. don't you hate when you see that? >> you feel bad for him. >> how did he get out? die miss something? >> i don't know. maybe -- i have no idea. some lubricant or something. i don't know. >> lucky dog. >> probably wasn't easy. talk about what's happening in the west now, because a new storm is moving onshore. we got winter storm warnings galore here throughout almost every single state. high elevation problems. not many cities are dealing with the snow. a rain event sweeping down the california coastline. thankfully california it will clear out through today. san francisco, you look better now. a lot of the rain shifted to the south. a little bit of a radar tour starting in california. you notice san francisco, you've cleared it out. now it looks like fresno, light

rain, maybe another hour or two. we'll continue to have it shifting down in through los angeles. another morning commute, but another rainy day on interstate 5 all the way back down here into mission viejo and vegas, a chance of showers and eventually through arizona. further north, snow is falling. spokane getting a good dump of it now. mostly a little bit of rain there in the valleys south of yakama. seattle, for you, you're okay. showers around this morning. in other areas getting hit hard with snow, mup of idaho meaning jackson hole another big fresh dump of powder. if anyone chose the new year's holiday weekend to go skiing, a lot of great conditions. as i mentioned, the cities are all above freezing. not an issue. even boise in higher elevations, that's where we get all the snow. today's forecast, showers up in the northwest. san francisco, one ever spots already cleared out, still rain to come. l.a., san diego and in phoenix. g mark.a look at your wednesday

hopefully the roads won't be too bad if treated. this storm moves out for a decent thursday. details and the forecast coming up. >> thanks, bill. a rally, airlines have their palm out again and taking a team to court over drunken fans. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, she is shaking off the fact she's just branded one of the worst dubbed at the box office by getting engaged. and a tussle in texas and no favre, no problem for the vikings. you're watching "early today."

good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm veronica de la cruz. here are some of your top headlines this morning. authorities in arizona are searching for a shooting suspect who was mistakenly released from jail two weeks ago. a local sheriff's office says it never received paperwork to properly charge him and accidentally grabbed him a $320 bail. the state of wisconsin will pay at least $25,000 to a milwaukee man who spent 23 years in prison for a murder he didn't commit. robert lee simpson says he needs the funds since he hasn't been able to land even one job interview since he was cleared by dna evidence two years ago. the state legislature is being asked to approve $90,000 more in compensation. starting next month, all new stamps will be labeled forever, eliminating first class stamps with denominations and the need to add one and two cent stamps when rates change. the u.s. postal service says this was designed to help frustrated customers cope with postage increases.

and in peru -- several police officers are being treated for injuries sustained in a raid targeting illegal fireworks. one of the vendors decided to retaliate by setting off a firework known for launching small shrapnel chips when it explodes. and now here's an early look how wall street will kick off the day -- the dow opens at is 11,525. the s&p was up a fraction and the nasdaq shed four points. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei gained 51 points while in hong kong the hang seng surged 347. well, not long ago, bad economic data would leave investors rupping for cover. yesterday, the markets not only shrugged off bad numbers, these even eked out some gains. a santa claus rally thankses to a rise in oil prices and demand for heating oil. chevron and exxon both hit new 52-week highs. this more confident market swatted off down beat numbers.

december is consumer confidence unexpectedly fell while the october price of single family homes fell almost double what was expected. home builder beazer fell 4.5% on that news. on the brighter side, new sales data confirmed retailers are poised to show their best holiday season in three years. general motors was up over 2% after analysts from banks underwrote ip initiated coverage with favorable ratings. mankind corp. jumped after its experimental diabetes drug by regulators raised hopes the drug won't be rejected. elsewhere, united, continental and delta confirmed they're raising domestic ticket prices with others expected to follow. allstate sued bank of america, its countrywide lending unit and 17 other defendants for misrepresenting the risks on more than $700 million of mortgage securities it bought from countrywide. and a move sure to increase

tensions. china will dramatically cut its exports of rare earth minerals next year shrinking already scarce supplies needed for a wide range of high-tech products. and finally you know what they say about a woman scorned? a kentucky woman is suing the cincinnati bengals and the county and a beer vendor at their stadium for damages after a spectator fell on her breaking her nose and finger last season. hmm. the lakers hope to forget the alamo and a cold reception for pennsylvania's governor. plus, speaking of the keystone state, the minnesota vikings spun a little web last night en route to a shocker in philadelphia. your early morning sports headlines are just ahead. a big storm system out west will head for the middle of the country. your thus forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today." well, good morning.

if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, the nfl's staged its first tuesday game since 1946 last night. and the way the eagles played, they probably never want to see another. here's nbc's mario solis with a look at all your sports headlines. >> hi there and good morning. it was the nfl's first tuesday night game in 64 years.

it was also the perfect time for the vikings' joe webb to make a name for himself. webb pulling off a perfect michael vick impression in the third, scrambles to his right, makes a move and dashes into the end zone. vikings up, 17-7. this over the eagles. that was vick's rendition. here is the real deal. vick up the middle and in. adrian peterson puts minnesota up 10. vikings take it 24-14. l.a. lakers seemed to be frustrated the entire game. after the jumper, kobe bryant and george exchanging words. duncan comes in to play peacemaker. blair was cool, calm and collected. he had 17 and 15. spurs win easily, 97-82. for the heat, nice of lebron, and the nicest bosh, last night it was all dwyane wade. 15 coming in the fourth quarter. wade sat out a game last week with a sore knee. that knee looked pretty good

last night. heat wins, 96-48. there's something special going on in pittsburgh. the pen's sidney crosby extending his scoring streak to an incredible 25 games. he had four points against the thrashers. it's the longest streak since mario lemieux scored six 28 straight 16 years ago. when pennsylvania governor ed rendell got to his seat at the eagles' game, there was a sign that said "this seat reserved for non-wooses." it was rendell who questioned the nfl decision to move the game to tuesday night saying that we've become a nation of wases. wooses. if snow is what rendell wanted, he got it. he had plenty of snow all over his seat. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm mario solis. making lindsay lohan on the silver screen. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight he has. plus, when you see confetti in times square, you'll know a

secret about what is floating by. you're watching "early today."

well, the latest storm is moving through california. shifting into southern california in through the valley. from vegas to l.a., san diego to phoenix, everyone be prepared to drive in rainy conditions during the day today. high elevation, anyone traveling throughout the west will have to deal with snow. that's widespread from xoe cane

spokane through mountains tucson. going through tomorrow, the storm moves out. behind it, cold temperatures. highs around 42 tomorrow in vegas. that's chilly for any time of year, but pretty much drying out ever so slowly. if you're watching on kcr 3 sacramento, california, celebrate the beauty of a the finest early collection of master drawings in the u.s. at a pioneering collection at the crocker art museum. that's your pick event of the day, veronica. >> always a good day for the museum. all right. here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. actress reese witherspoon not only has a new man, she is engaged. the oscar winner will walk down the aisle with hollywood agent jim tosh who she began dating in january. shortly after splitting with jake gyllenhaal. she and ryan phillippe divorced in 2008 after seven years oeg.

together. "the empire strikes back," "saturday night fever" and "all the president's men" are among 25 films chosen this year to be preserved by the library of congress as part of its national film registry. preserved for artistic, cultural or historical significance it will be kept safe for viewing by future generations. finally, the new york post reports a lindsay lohan movie spoof is in the works. in "dogs and pocketbooks" the screenwriter described the lead as "a bratty movie goddess in and out of rehab, hounded by greedy agents, predatory paparazzi, off the wall stalkers and crazed media" and so on and so forth. not interested. >> how many you have seen? "poltergeist," "all the president's men". >> what would you add? >> i hope "e.t." from that era. >> what else?

maybe "grease." >> oh, yeah, cultural. >> "pretty woman." >> i like the ones they added. >> what was the best movie of 2010? >> oh, 2010? i saw "avatar," but that was last year. for some folks, this year's bad memories are as good as gone. yesterday was good riddance day as new yorkers lined up to shred the activity of 2010, members of the rock band green day took a more political stand shredding a don't ask, don't tell sign. in two days when the giant crystal ball drops in times square, all those bad memories will rain down as confetti wiping the slate clean for 2011. i'm veronica de la cruz and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

the holiday season usually means avoiding the scales. but for penguins in antarctica weighing in could lead to an important discovery. scientists believe the climate change has affected the eating habits and weight of the birds. the scales have been hidden throughout their colony and experts hope falling pen kwing weights will shed light on how they've been adapting to changes in their habitat. too cute. to say one winter wonderland in germany is cool would be an understatement. it took 160 tons of ice to create this ice festival. a dozen sculptors spent just two weeks creating amazing xrurs, including birds, trees and eve an few insects. to maintain their fragile art's

most minute details, the exhibit is kept at a constant temperature of 17 degrees. as far as food fights go, this one might take the cake. opposing armies battle for control of the town armed with flour and eggs following at least 200 years of tradition on a day compared to april fools' day. not even spectators are safe. those who refuse to pay a fine which goes to charity risk being covered in the floury concoction. you know, bill, i have never been involved in a food fight. >> you should go over to spain for the one where they throw the tomatoes. that's the grandaddy of them all. >> no way. we should start the tradition right here. all right. time now for a look at the stories we are going to be following right here on "early today" on nbc -- we'll find out just how merry the christmas shopping season was for the nation's retailers and struggling economy when industry adviser shopper track releases its christmas sales data. in los angeles, a judge in the criminal case against michael jackson's former physician will decide whether a

pair of syringes and an i.v. bag found in jackson's bedroom should undergo further testing. conrad murray hopes to convince the california court there is not enough evidence to try their client for involuntary manslaughter. and happy birthday to iconic actress and activist mary tyler moore who turns 74 years old today. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. survivors speak out about frightening moments on the ski lift that gave way in maine. and gear up for a fitter new year with a look back at some of the top food offenders of 2010. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm veronica de la cruz. thank you so much for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a terrific wednesday.

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